The Man Who

Sold The World

After the Space Oddity album went nowhere fast, Bowie hardly had time to put his trusted 12-string down before he was back in the studio with a new direction, Heavy Metal, for the album, The Man Who Sold The World.

David Bowie: The Man Who Sold The World 

Try to remember, this was 1970 and there had been only a handful of "heavy rock albums" released by then:

• Led Zepplin 1 1968
• In The Court Of The Crimson King...King Crimson 1969
• Led Zepplin 2 1969
• Deep Purple In Rock 1969
• Black Sabbath 1970

...and it's debatable whether any of them were "heavy metal", though, most certainly, The Man Who Sold The World was. Quite possibly, Bowie the first artist (or producer Tony Visconti) to stumble upon what we now acknowledge as heavy metal, though he subsequently dropped it as quickly as he'd picked it up! Like many "metal" albums since, though, it's lyrically quite extreme with songs about:

Homosexual Mysticism: The Width Of A Circle

"...Breathe, breathe, breathe deeply, I was seething, breathing deeply, a spitting sentry horned and tailed, waiting for you..."

Alienation / Elitism: After All

"...Please trip them gently, they don't like to fall            Oh by jingo
There's no room for anger, we're all very small             Oh by jingo

We're painting our faces and dressing in thoughts from the skies
From Paradise
But they think that we're holding a secretive ball
Won't someone invite them
They're just taller children, that's all, after all..."

Madness: All The Madmen

"...Yes I'd rather be here with all the madmen than perish with the sad me roaming free..."

Murderous Psychosis: Running Gun Blues

"...I count the corpses on my left I find I'm not so tidy, so I'd better get away, better make it a day, I've had 23 down since Friday...but I can't control it..."

Sex:  She Shook Me Cold

"...I was very smart, broke the gentle hearts of many young virgins. I was quick on the ball, left them so lonely they'd just give up trying. Then she took my head, smashed it up, kept my young blood rising, crushed me mercilessly, kept me going around so she don't know I crave her so-o-o. My God, she shook me cold..."

Mysticism:  The Man Who Sold The World

"...We passed upon a stair, we spoke of was and when. Although I wasn't there, he said I was his friend, which came as some suprise, I spoke into his eyes:

...I thought you died alone, a long, long time ago...'

...Oh no, not me, I never lost control, you're face to face with the man who sold the world..."

Post-Atlantean Mysticism: The Supermen

"...When all the world was very young and mountain magic a-heavy hung The Supermen would walk in file, guardians of a loveless isle...where sad-eyed mermen tossed in slumber, nightmare dreams no mortal mind could hold.."*

With the original release, Mercury SR61325 showing Bowie resplendant in a dress on a chaise longe, the cover certainly brought him some international recognition, but unfortunately, even fewer sales than Space Oddity. Nevertheless, it was a brilliant tactical move that paid huge dividends  when Bowie started to conquer the world a couple of years later.

By then, RCA had replaced it with another cover, which you can see on the t-shirt below.

The Man Who Sold The World t-shirt

Of course, the notoriety of the "dress cover" merely helped the Bowie mystique and it was about 30 years before the original cover was used again. 

The Man Who Sold The World was also the album that brought guitarist Mick Ronson and drummer Woody Woodmansey into the loop, the beginnings of what became Ziggy Stardust's band, The Spiders From Mars. 

There are certainly songs of merit on The Man Who Sold The World, in fact, Nirvana covered the compelling title track with some success in the 90s but it's the least known of all David Bowie's major albums, simply because it's so hard to comment on. Try the vinyl reissue's blurb:

"Neither metaphor nor analogue, Bowie's music insists on its own reality. Phantasmagoria is its reality; the preternatural its unsettling truth. Never attidunal, somehow both stark and lavish (intelligent & sensual), this album...is a clear prognosis for the 70s."

Huh?

Nevertheless, when you follow the Atlenatean/mysticism line of research*, The Man Who Sold The World starts to become a rich seam of Bowie info, illuminating most of his works up to and including Station To Station in 1976.

Although The Man Who Sold The World** failed commercially, zooming off into heavy metal was a brave move for what had been, to all intents and purposes, a twisted folkie...ands a sign that Bowie was a man prepared to take enormous risks. Consequently, although The Man Who Sold The World is for Bowie nuts only...it's a pretty interesting ride if you're prepared to get on the bus.

David Bowie: The Man Who Sold The World

"...This is Bowie's first great album and...(knocks) his '80s stuff into a cocked hat. A fantastic buy..." Amazon.co.uk reviewer Mr. M. A. West

"...Being a Bowie fan for quite a while now, I aquired this album as part of my exploration. This album is absolutely awesome. Call it psychedelic, call it hard rock, call it blues, country, folk. All songs (have) the typical Bowie quirkiness...(and)...is a must-have for any loyal fan, a critical part of the Bowie saga..." Amazon.com reviewer Kind van Grond

"...What always struck me about The Man Who Sold The World was 'Wha? Where did that come from?'. Bowie has stated that he cannot do personal, I think a tad tongue in cheek, because this album is about experiential and personal as it can get, Oh by jingo indeed!..." Amazon.co.uk reviewer Telefret

"...David Bowie made at least 7 masterpiece albums in his career but nothing sounds quite like The Man Who Sold the World. It's dark, it's crunchy, it's wild, and oddly whimsical. His vocals are untamed. Mick Ronson's guitar sounds like hot sex. The rhythms are being held together by a string. But it's all great....In my opinion, this is one of the greatest rock albums ever made. If you love Bowie, or are just into rock in general, give it a listen!..." Amazon.com reviewer G. Kleinschmidt

Bowie At The Beeb is a remastered collection of LIVE performances during the years 1969-1972, containing LIVE versions of the following tracks from The Man Who Sold the World:

• The Width Of A Circle
• The Supermen

David Bowie: Bowie At The Beeb

"...If you're a Bowie fan, you're in for a treat. I first heard tracks from this album while I was sitting in a coffee shop. I thought he'd done some new LIVE acoustic recordings, they sounded so fresh. There are a lot of tracks and some clunkers but the good ones make up for it. Bowie is of course and incredible performer and the necessity of these stripped down BBC recordings lets his performances shine. He rips into the songs in a way that's not possible on a studio album. Magical!..." Amazon.com reviewer Martin G. Walker

A few months after the release of The Man Who Sold The World, Bowie released a single, Holy Holy (which I first got as the b-side to the Diamond Dogs single). 

It's fairly forgettable and quickly sank without a trace but I'll let wikipedia take up the story.

For more info, see:

• wikipedia: The Man Who Sold The World
• Lulu The Man Who Sold The World, 1973, produced & arranged by David Bowie & Mick Ronson
• David Bowie LIVE The Man Who Sold The World, 2002

*For a greater insight into all that Post Atlantean stuff, take a peak at The Spear Of Destiny which goes into it in some detail, purporting to be an insight into the black magic origins of the Hitler and the Nazi party.

**There seemed no place to mention it in the review but Black Country Rock's music, too, has that very "up" T. Rex groove, best heard in Jeepster, (1971) which would become so massively popular in the UK in 1971 and 1972.  Listen carefully and you'll hear that Bowie's vocal is definitely a friendly send-up of T.Rex singer Marc Bolan, who was then, like Bowie, metamorphosing from folkie to rocker.